Frozen
by Reader4077
Summary: Based off that *evil* cliffhanger at the end of "Setup" where Castle and Beckett are locked in the freezer. I couldn't wait till Monday, and this is the result. How I think the episode will continue.  Or at least, how I wish it will. Very Caskett
1. Chapter 1

Detective Kate Beckett's heart sank as she heard the sure sounds of the door being locked from the outside. Lowering her gun, she went over to the door and shoved her weight against it. It didn't budge. But that didn't stop her from trying again. And again. Finally, Castle came over and stopped her.

"Whoa!" He said, wrapping his arms around her, holding her in place. Kate couldn't help but sag a little into the strength and warmth of his arms. "Ok?" He asked her, and she nodded. Castle let go of her and wandered to the back of the freezer. "Kate….?" He called. She looked up at him. "It's Jamal." Becket immediately came over. Jamal was frozen solid, so he'd obviously been in here a while. But that hadn't been the cause of death. Jamal had been shot through the head, just like his cousin, Amir. Beckett took in the sight, then turned away and walked back towards the front of the freezer. There had to be a way out of this! She heard Castle drop the body and walk over to join her.

"How cold do you think it is in here?" Castle asked, already shivering.

"One below zero." She told him, the cold already starting to steep into her bones. It wouldn't be long until the hypothermia set in. Kate looked around, desperately looking for a way out. She examined the door, then drew out her gun and fired several shots at where she figured the lock was.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Castle cried, ducking down to avoid any ricochets. Kate turned towards him.

"No one knows we're here Castle. We have to get out!" Castle nodded.

"But that," he said, walking over to her. "Is just going to get us killed." Kate couldn't help but see his logic and put her gun away.

"This isn't good Castle." She said.

"No, it's not."

"I could really use a silver lining right about now."

"I really wish I had one." Castle said regretfully. Kate sighed. Shivering, she rubbed her hands up and down her arms, trying to get some warmth back into them. She was already beginning to lose feeling in her fingers. Castle walked over to her and shrugging off his coat, he draped it around her shoulders.

"Castle…" She tried to protest, but Castle stopped her.

"Take it." He told her, with a look in his eyes that permitted no argument. "Take it." He told her again. Kate hesitated, then nodded, then accepted it with a grateful nod. Slipping her arms through the sleeves, she began to pace up and down, trying to keep warm. Castle was jumping up and down, his breath coming out in short breaths which froze almost instantly. It was beginning to get hard to breathe as their lungs began to burn. Castle came over to her and put his arms around her. Normally, she would have protested, but she was too cold and too grateful to share what little body heat he had. They were both shaking with cold, lips turning blue, and fast losing all feeling. They had to be found – _fast_. They stood like that for a while, just clinging to each other, trying to stay warm.

"K-Kate…" Castle began, his voice shaky with cold, but then he trailed off. Kate summoned up the energy to look up at him.

"Y-Yeah, C-Castle?" She shivered. Castle tightened his hold on her, but he had almost no warmth left to give her. He looked down at her and smiled.

"I'm s-so g-glad I m-met you." He told her. "Y-you turned m-my life upside d-down. I w-wouldn't h-have missed it f-for the w-world." T-thank y-you." Kate was shocked, but she saw the sincerity in his eyes. As they lost the ability to stand, they sank down to sit against the wall, cuddling next to each other, she smiled at him.

"I-I'm g-glad I met y-you too C-Castle." She told him, shivering again. "I c-can't f-feel anyt-thing." She admitted.

"N-neither can I-I." He told her. "J-Just stay with me." But Kate was fast losing her grip on consciousness, Castle not far behind her.

"I j-just want you to k-know." Kate whispered, fighting the sleepiness. "H-how much I-I love you." Then her body went limp as she fell unconscious.

"K-Kate!" Castle called her name softly with all the strength he had left that he could muster. It wasn't much. He too was fighting closing his eyes. "Stay with me Kate. Stay with me." He whispered over and over again, it becoming his mantra, clinging to her. "I l-love you t-too." He whispered, then he too fell unconscious.


	2. Chapter 2

Ryan and Esposito had also realized what Castle and Beckett had about Kevin McCann being at both the places that Amir had. After talking to Montgomery, and explaining, he had given them permission. Now, they were pulling up to the abandoned warehouse where this whole case had begun, and climbed out of the car.

"Bro, look." Esposito said. "Isn't that Castle's car?" Kevin looked, and then nodded. They looked at each other then drew their guns and snuck into the building. They quickly confirmed that the building was empty and that the bomb wasn't here. But then, neither were Beckett or Castle, and they were getting worried. But then, something caught Esposito's eye.

"Dude" he said, pointing to a large crate. "What's that?"Ryan looked over at him, and then they walked over to investigate.

"It's locked." Ryan said. Esposito raised his gun, getting into position. Looking over at Ryan, he nodded and tensed as Ryan slowly unlocked it, ready for whatever might be in there. But as Ryan threw open the door, the only thing he was hit with was a blast of cold air. He took a step back for a second to adjust then peered into the container. It was empty. Except….

"Shit!" Esposito cursed as he recognized the unconscious bodies of Kate Beckett and Richard Castle. He and Ryan ran over to their friends. "She's alive. Barely." Esposito said, checking Kate's pulse.

"Same here." Ryan said, doing the same to Castle. Both of them were ice cold, with blue lips, frozen lips and very shallow pulses. Who knew how long they had been in here. Reaching down, Esposito scooped Kate's limp body out of Castle's arms, who was still holding her, even when unconscious, and carried her out side. Gently. He laid her down on the ground and draped his jacket over her. He couldn't help but notice that she was already wearing Castle's. Then he went back and helped Ryan carry out Castle. They laid him down next to Kate, and Ryan covered him with his coat. As he did so, Esposito reached for his radio.

"This is Detective Esposito." He called. "Requesting immediate medical assistance. I have two hypothermia victims in need of immediate aid." Esposito gave the dispatcher their location, who told him that ambulances were on their way. Meanwhile, Ryan was placing a call to Montgomery to inform him of the situation.

"Sir, we have a problem." He said. "We just found Beckett and Castle in a freezer. Severe hypothermia. We don't know how long they were in there. Both are unconscious. It doesn't look good." Ryan nodded as Montgomery spoke. "Yes sir. Ambulances are on their way. Yes sir." He said once more then hung up his phone. "Captain's on his way." He told Esposito who just nodded as he looked at his unconscious friends. This was _not_ good.


	3. Chapter 3

In reality, it wasn't long before the ambulances arrived, but to Ryan and Esposito, it seemed like forever before they heard the sirens. Time dragged as they worried about their friends, trying to make them as warm as possible. Ryan had gotten a blanket from the car and draped it across them as they waited. Neither of them wanted to add two more victims to this case, particularly their friends. What seemed like an eternity later, they finally heard the sirens and a moment later the ambulances came screeching into view. Paramedics came running into the warehouse and immediately went over to Castle and Beckett.

"How long were they in there?" One of them asked as the paramedics hoisted Castle and Beckett onto stretchers and wheeled them outside to the ambulances. Ryan and Esposito just looked at each other.

"We don't know." Esposito said. "They got kicked off the case twelve hours ago, so anytime since then." The paramedic nodded, then ran over to rejoin his team. But this time, Captain Montgomery and several other officers from the precinct had arrived, including Agent Mark Fallon.

"What the Hell happened?" Montgomery asked, coming up to Ryan and Esposito after checking in with the paramedics who were putting Castle and Beckett into the backs of two ambulances and sirens blaring, rushing them to the hospital.

"I don't know sir." Ryan said. "We opened the freezer and there they were. Locked in."

"So obviously someone locked them in." Montgomery said.

"Who was most likely our terrorist." Agent Fallon added.

"Which means the bomb might have been here." Esposito said.

"Leading to Castle and Beckett getting locked in." Ryan finished.

"Right." Montgomery nodded. "Hopefully one of them will be able to tell us something. You two." He told Ryan and Esposito, "Follow them to the hospital and see what you can find out. Call their families. Agent Fallon, you lead the search here." Everyone nodded as they accepted their assignments. "Right. Let's catch this son-of-a-bitch."


	4. Chapter 4

At the hospital, it was a flurry of activity. Doctors and nurses flowed in and out, taking care of Castle and Beckett, trying to get them warm. Ryan had managed to get them placed in the same room, but he and Esposito had been forced to wait in the waiting room. They had called Jim, Beckett's father, and he had come rushing over as soon as he'd heard. He was now collapsed in a chair in the corner of the room, trying to hold himself together. He couldn't lose Kate. He just couldn't. Without her, he would be all alone. Lost. It had taken them a bit longer to get hold of Martha and Alexis, but they had and their flight was landing now. Captain Montgomery and other officers had been in and out, asking about the pair. But there was still no news. They were both in critical condition, but that's all they knew. A little while later, everyone looked up as Alexis and Martha rushed in.

"What happened?" Martha demanded to know.

"He and Beckett got locked in a freezer." Esposito told them as Martha put an arm around Alexis. "We don't know how long they were in there, and they both have severe hypothermia. All we know is that they're in critical condition." Alexis sniffed, fighting back tears as she heard this. She couldn't imagine life without her dad.

"Oh, sweetheart…" Martha said as she enwrapped her in a hug. Jim Beckett got to his feet and joined them, and was immediately included in the group hug, each seeking comfort and assurance that their loved one would be Ok. But there was nothing to do but wait. After what seemed like an eternity later, after several pots of coffee and several visits from Captain Montgomery to see how they were doing and to update them on the case, a doctor finally came in. Everyone looked up. Exhausted, but hopeful.

"It looks like they're both going to make it." He announced and there were sighs of relief from everyone. "Neither of them is awake yet but we're hopeful." He continued. "Now, I must warn you that Mr. Castle is worse off than Miss. Beckett, so it may take him longer for him to recover. His core temperature was lower than hers." There were some worried glances but the doctor reassured them. "But they both should be awake within the next hour or so. You should be able to visit them soon." He told them.

"Thank you." Martha told him and the doctor nodded as he left. There were sighs of relief and smiles around the room. It had been a long night, but it looked like they were going to pull through.

"He gave her his coat." Esposito said suddenly and everyone looked at him. "Castle." He explained. "He gave Kate his coat. That's why his temperature is lower." There were some knowing looks exchanged. Everyone knew about the love they had for each other. Everyone except Castle and Kate themselves. Ryan excused himself to call this in to the precinct where news was also being waited for anxiously. By now, Lanie had joined them and she followed after the doctor to try and get some more information out of him. It looked like the wait was almost over.

_A/N_

_Reviews=Love=Me updating faster!_


	5. Chapter 5

Sure enough, pretty soon the doctors let them in to see their friends. Neither of them had woken up yet, but both their temperatures were near normal. Their skin had lost that blue color and they were both breathing normally.

"Oh, Dad…" Alexis whispered as she went forward to take his hand. It was still a little cooler than normal to the touch, but not overly so. Martha put her arm around her as she gazed down on her son as he slept. Beside them, Jim Beckett pushed a few stray hairs out of his daughter's face and bent down to kiss her on the forehead. He couldn't stand to see his beautiful strong daughter like this. They took turns sitting in the room, in vigil, waiting for them to wake. In the end, it was Kate who forced her way to consciousness first. Alexis was in the room, sitting in the chair in between the two beds when Kate groaned and began to stir.

"Detective?" Alexis was immediately on her feet and by her side. "Kate?" Kate groaned and forced her eyes to open a crack.

"Alexis…" She croaked. Alexis grinned at her.

"Thank goodness you're alright!"

"Castle…" Kate whispered, asking how he was. Alexis's face fell a little.

"He hasn't woken up yet." She told Kate softly, moving to the side so that she could see him. "But the doctors say that he sould soon. His temperature was lower than yours." Alexis watched as Kate took this in. "Now, I should probably tell the others that you're awake. Everyone's been really worried since Ryan and Esposito found you in that freezer." Alexis smiled at Kate then quietly left the room. She stopped at the nurses' station let them know that Kate was awake, then walked down to the waiting room where everyone was waiting. As she stuck her head in the door, everyone looked up at her. Alexis grinned at them.

"Kate's awake." There were immediate grins and huge sighs of relief around the room. Jim buried his face in his hands, so thankful that his little girl was ok.

"Thank God." Martha whispered as she put her arms around Jim comfortingly.

"If you don't mind Jim," Esposito said, rising to his feet, "But if you don't mind, we need to talk to your daughter." Jim nodded, and Ryan placed a hand on his shoulder.

"Thanks." Then the two of them left to see their friends and to find out what had happened to them. By the time, they stuck their heads into the room, Kate was sitting up despite the doctors protests. She turned as she heard them come in.

"Hey guys." She said, her voice still soft, still weak.

"How're you feeling?" Ryan asked as the two of them came to stand by her bed.

"I've been better." She told them. "I'm still cold." She admitted, stealing a glance over to where Castle was still out. Ryan and Esposito noticed, but kindly didn't say anything.

"So what happened?" Esposito asked, hating to push her, but they had to know. This could be crucial to helping them find the bomb.

"Castle had Amir's driving record." She told them, "And we realized that Kevin McCann had also been to all the places that Amir had, so we went back to the warehouse. There was a white van in there. So we opened the back. We found the bomb." She told them. "It was set to go off at 4 o'clock today. But then we came under fire, so we retreated to the only available place. The freezer. Then they locked us in."

"Did you get a look at any of the faces?" Esposito asked, and Beckett shook her head regretfully.

"No. I was kinda busy trying not to get shot."

"What about the van?" Ryan asked.

"All I know was that it was white. I didn't get a number." Ryan and Esposito nodded, disappointed but they hadn't really expected anything."

"We found white tape in the warehouse." Ryan told her. "They must have used it to cover the van, so it could be any color now." Beckett sighed then nodded. There was silence for a moment as they all thought, and Kate glanced over at Castle again.

"He'll be Ok." Esposito said, following her look. Kate blushed a little.

"He gave me his coat." She whispered, looking over at him. "He risked his life to keep me warm." Ryan and Esposito exchange looks.

"It's not the first time." Ryan said. Kate shot him a glare, but he just grinned at her. "Face it Kate. He's not going to go away." Kate sighed, but with just a glimpse of a smile.

"I know. And I wouldn't have it any other way." She admitted. Ryan and Esposito looked at each other again.

"He'll be fine Kate." Esposito assured her again. "But if you'll excuse us, we have a bomb to find, and I'm sure your dad is waiting anxiously. Kate nodded.

"Good luck." She told them as they left the room. When they had gone, she turned to look at Castle again. "Please wake up Castle…" She whispered. "You promised you'd always be there for me."

_A/N_

_Thank you so much for all the reviews! They make me happy. And if you think this is Caskett, just you wait! Please review!_


	6. Chapter 6

_A/N_

_Beware! Here be a LOT of Caskett fluff! Prepare to say 'Awww…..' _

After Ryan and Esposito left, sure enough her dad came in, and Kate tried to reassure him that she was fine, that she wasn't going anywhere. After him, came Lanie, then Martha and Alexis again, followed by Captain Montgomery with Agent Fallon who wanted to hear her story again. When they left, Kate was left alone again for a while, before Alexis came back in to sit with her and wait for Castle to wake up. For a while, they just sat in silence, inwardly pleading with the man they both loved to wake up.

"Please Castle…" she whispered. "You promised you'd always be there. Don't break that promise." But despite both of their inward pleadings, it was a while before Castle began to show any signs of life. It was about an hour later before he groaned as he forced his way to consciousness.

"Castle?"

"Dad?" Kate and Alexis asked almost at the same time. Alexis walked over to him, and took his hand. It was warmer than it had been before. Castle managed to open his eyes a bit.

"Alexis?" Castle whispered his daughter's name. Alexis grinned, and reached down to give him a hug, which Castle returned weakly. "What about Kate…?" He asked. Alexis just grinned and moved so he could see her.

"Don't you scare me like that again Castle!" Kate said from where she was sitting up in bed.

"I'll try not to." He told her with that boyish grin of his, and Kate couldn't help but smile back. Alexis just grinned then reached down to hug him again. When she finally let go of him, she hesitantly walked to the door.

"I should let everyone know that you're awake." She told him as she reached the door. "Love you dad."

"I love you too sweetheart." Castle said, pushing himself up into a sitting position. Alexis smiled at him again then went out the door, so it was just him and Kate. They sat there for a moment in silence.

"Any news on the bomb?" Castle finally asked her and she shook her head.

"Not yet." She told him regretfully. "But they'll find it." There was silence again. Neither of them knew how to start the conversation they both wanted to have.

"Castle…" Kate finally started then hesitated. She wasn't sure how she wanted to say this.

"Yes Kate?" Castle asked softly. Kate looked over at him. He almost never called her by her first name. She saw the seriousness that was in his eyes.

"Thank you." She finally said.

"For what?" He asked. "It was my fault that we were in that mess. If I hadn't been me, if I hadn't encouraged you to go rouge, we never would have been trapped in there, and you wouldn't have almost died." Kate could see the regret in his eyes.

"No, Castle…" she said. "You were right. We found the bomb. We were just too late. This is _not_ your fault." She told him.

"Then what are you thanking me for?" he asked her.

"For _being you_." She told him. "For being there. I can't imagine this job without you anymore." Kate looked up at Castle, feeling very vulnerable. "You've save me so many times when I was hurting. And what I said… When we were in that freezer… I meant it." She said quietly. Castle looked at her.

"I love you too." He told her softly. "From the very first day that I met you, you fascinated me. You are an amazing person Kate. Truly extraordinary. And I can't imagine my life without you. I don't want to. You changed me. Made me a better person. And I wouldn't have it any other way." He smiled at her. "Thank you Kate. For everything."

_A/N_

_I think this is where I'm going to stop. I hope you enjoyed this story! Now, if only this would actually happen on Monday… Sadly the probability is very low. Anyways, please leave me a review and let me know what you think! Please?_


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